FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2014
Volume 13 Issue 297
Santa Monica Daily Press
CRIME WATCH SEE PAGE 6
We have you covered
THE HALLOWEEN ISSUE
Roll Call: The best and worst attendance Campaign notes: Last records among council candidates BY KEVIN TRUONG Special To The Daily Press
CITY HALL Former Santa Monica Mayor Bobby Shriver, who is running for Los Angeles County Supervisor, is taking some heat for his attendance record on the City Council but he’s not the only one who’s missed some meetings. Of the 14 candidates for Santa Monica’s City Council, eight have previously served on a local board or committee. Some of those candidates are currently serving and some served more than a
decade ago. The Daily Press took a closer look at the attendance records of all eight candidates in their most recent two years in office. We also tallied partial absences, which we considered the act of missing more than 30 minutes of a meeting. Leading the race for most absences is Mayor Pam O’Connor who has missed 10 meetings in the past two years she has served on the council. This amounts to more than 20 percent of meetings missed during the time period. O’Connor pointed to her career as a historic preservation planner as well her
responsibility to travel on official city business. “A few of those meetings were when I was required to be at the other cities’ meetings to fulfill the duties of my full-time job.” O’Connor said in an e-mail. “Then a few meetings were representing the City or Metro in (Washington D.C.) or Sacramento or elsewhere.” O’Connor also said she missed two series of budget study sessions, which totaled to six meetings, because she was out SEE ABSENT PAGE 10
minute loans and outside spending BY DAVID MARK SIMPSON Daily Press Staff Writer
CITYWIDE Two City Council candidates have dropped big personal loans into their campaigns in this season’s last days. Planning Commissioner Sue Himmelrich added $40,000 from her own pocket on Oct. 22, bringing the total she’s spent on her own campaign to $130,000. Former Mayor Michael Feinstein added $30,000 of his own money to his war chest on Monday, bringing the amount he’s spent SEE CASH PAGE 11
No trick-or-treaters? Buy Halloween candy anyway! BETH J. HARPAZ Associated Press
NEW YORK Don Stewart and his wife will be
HALLOWEEN SPIRIT
Courtesy photo Santa Monica host families gathered in Douglas Park last week to teach their international au pairs about the American Halloween tradition. The group gathered for costumes, cookies, crafts and games.
home with the lights on Halloween night, waiting for trick-or-treaters. But like a lot of folks who stock up on candy, they’ll probably end up eating it themselves. “My wife and I buy candy every year, knowing that trick-or-treaters won’t come to see us,” said Stewart, an artist in Homewood, Alabama. That’s why they buy the treats they like, not necessarily what they think kids will like: “Nothing is wasted. If we plan well, there’s usually enough to last us ‘til Christmas.” This little game of self-deception plays out each year in buildings where apartmentSEE CANDY PAGE 10
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